PETERBOROUGH — The Women’s Lacrosse 2019 U19 World Championship began on Thursday, August 1, and carried on until Saturday, August 10, seeing four new teams to the five pools accommodated.
The United States reasserted its dominance by avenging a loss in the 2015 final by beating Canada 13-3 in the gold medal game. About 3,000 spectators braved intermittent showers and unseasonably cool temperatures at Justin Chiu Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
While out of 23 teams, Team Haudenosaunee ranked 10th and this was seen as a victory in itself.
“The Haudenosaunee Nationals finished in 10th place in the 2019 U-19 World Championship,” wrote the Haudenosaunee Nationals Facebook Page. “In 2015, due to a passport dispute, our U-19 women were not allowed to travel to compete in that World Championship. Therefore, due to not competing, our girls came into this tournament ranked 15th and settled in Pool E. If you were able to make it to Trent University in Peterborough to see these young women play, or you watched it on laxsportsnet, you were able to see the hunger in their stick-work and the way they sprinted down the field. Our girls wanted this. They continue to fight hard to play this game that our people created. Their fight was evident — rising 5 spots in the ranking to 10th in the world.”
“The Haudenosaunee Nationals pool of players for this World Championship was less than 60. Within that minute group of girls, we picked the best 18 and rose to 10th best in the world. We couldn’t be more proud of you and the way that each and every single one of you upheld your class and represented our people well. Ja:goh ladies! You are winners in our eyes. Nya:weñha for being the best role models, ambassadors, and lacrosse players for our Confederacy.”
After Jacelyn Lazore of Team Haudenosaunee gave the t-shirt that came with her prize for Player of the Game Award to the player that score Belgiums only goal, the sportsmanship proved to be resounding throughout the tournament.
When the Israeli team played Kenya, the players noticed the Kenyan team did not have cleats but were wearing regular sneakers. The day after Israel’s 13-4 victory, the team returned to the field and gifted a new pair of cleats to each member of the Kenyan team.
